NJ Commercial Auto Minimum Limits (And Why They’re Never Enough)
Jeff Friedlander, Managing Member·5 min read
New Jersey’s minimum liability limit is a legal floor, not a safety net. Here’s the difference.
What 35/70/25 means
For policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2026, New Jersey requires a standard commercial vehicle to carry minimum liability of 35/70/25: $35,000 bodily injury per person, $70,000 bodily injury per accident, and $25,000 property damage. Hit those numbers and you’re legal to operate.
Heavier vehicles are a different rule. A commercial motor vehicle rated 10,001 to 26,000 lbs GVWR must carry a $300,000 combined single limit, and anything 26,001 lbs and up must carry $1.5 million. If you run box trucks or dumps, the split-limit floor above is not your floor.
Legal and protected are not the same thing.
Why the minimum fails
New Jersey sat at 15/30/5 for decades, then moved twice: 25/50/25 in 2023 and 35/70/25 in 2026. Real progress — and still not claim money. A single NJ ER visit can run $20,000, a back injury with surgery can hit $150,000, and a truck-into-storefront property claim can exceed $200,000. When the claim exceeds your limit, the rest comes out of your business.
What to actually carry
Most NJ commercial clients carry a $1 million combined single limit (CSL) — one number covering bodily injury and property damage together. It’s cleaner than split limits and barely more expensive than $500K. Many general contractors now require $1M as a contract minimum anyway. Read the full breakdown on our commercial auto liability page.
Going higher with an umbrella
For higher-exposure operations, a commercial umbrella adds $1M–$5M on top of your auto and general liability for a few hundred dollars a year — the cheapest dollar of coverage in commercial insurance.